Delegation
by Locura
Summary: Delegation. The mark of a true leader. How much of what Kyoya does is manipulation, and how much is simply leaving the right job to the right people? And how can a simple commoner possibly hope to manage?
1. It begins

Author's notes: I don't own any of it. I also have NO idea what I'm doing, as this is my first fanfic in years. And definitely in this genre. I hope to write more on this later as I DO have ideas on what to do with it, but...well, we'll see. This follows the Anime, as I preferred it over the manga. Told from Kyoya's point of view. If there are mistakes, please message me instead of putting it into the comments.  


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Delegation.

The mark of a true leader. Knowing who to trust, and how much. Who is best for which job. What role each person can best serve, when and where. Who's ready, who's not, and who just needs a little push. Kyoya knew.

Many people called it manipulation. He didn't mind. As if it was a bad thing to be able to manipulate circumstances. Isn't it what everyone did, to a certain extent? Kyoya was just a master at it.

He had thought he was a master when he had first met Tamaki, however that idiot had defied all his expectations. He had seen past Kyoya's mask and forced him to throw it aside. He had never been as infuriated as much as when he had finally punched that dithering idiot. Not before, and not after either. It was a blessing in disguise, though he didn't realize it at the moment. He just knew the complete frustration of realizing his position, as well as the intense satisfaction of finally fighting back and showing his true thoughts.

Looking back, Tamaki's friendship taught him all new things. It taught him how to occasionally have fun. It taught him to try new things. He was able to study new personalities and environments, opening himself to new experiences and possibilities. It taught him that having people who knew who he really was released some of the pressure he felt when he was pretending to be someone else. With the occasional break, he was able to become even more manipulative, as he wasn't constantly working under stress. It taught him new methods of manipulation. He really should thank Tamaki some day, though probably not. He'd take it wrong.

It also taught him new leadership skills. When he was a loaner, he had been intentionally confining himself, though he hadn't realized how. It's impossible to be a leader when there's no one to lead. Of course, before Tamaki, he hadn't dreamed of becoming a leader.

So Kyoya learned to delegate. He delegated dreaming and inspiring to Tamaki. Cheering up was delegated to the twins and Huni-sempi. Mori-sempi was the rock, the steady person. You always knew what he was going to do. Kyoya led, but from the shadows. With Takashi being the "leader" it allowed for Kyoya to spend more energy on actually running things. He didn't mind.

Then, in the second year of the host club, she walked in. Looking for a place to study she said. He knew right away that she was a girl. He had memorized the student roll after all. You never knew who would turn out to be important. He didn't say anything though, curious as to how this would play out. So few things were actually entertaining anymore, after all. Even the host club had fallen into routine lately.

He observed dispassionately as events unfolded.

Huni was the next to realize. Then Hikaru and Kaoru pulled off her glasses and everyone realized they had discovered a diamond. When Kaoru and Hikaru were forcibly ejected from the changing room, they were wearing matching knowing smiles that Kyoya understood. Next came Mori and finally Tamaki joined in. Though slightly disappointed the surprise was so quickly revealed, Kyoya wondered what new things would be eventually be revealed. He had the feeling this new addition would continue to entertain. Tamaki raised her debt. Made sure she would stay. Kyoya didn't object. He didn't mind.

He quickly realized that he had, again, been confining himself. He knew how to manipulate, to lead, his peers, but had never really worked with commoners before. Once he saw this, he began to go out of his way to study and test Haruhi. The entire host club began studying her almost as much as Kyoyo did, curious as to how this commoner would behave.

She was different.

She couldn't be impressed.

She had people.

She never ceased to amaze.

By the time Kyoya thought to wonder if she was actually a good example of commoners to study, it was too late. Everyone was fascinated, the terrifying Shadow King included. And surprisingly, he found he didn't mind.


	2. Astonish

AN: still don't own anything, still don't know what I'm doing. Looks like I'll be doing a review and a "through the eyes of" for a few episodes first. Hope you don't mind, 'cause there's nothing you can do about it. :P

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The first time she astonished him was at the ball.

Everyone knew there were differences between the wealthy and the poor. They tended to be uncouth and often times, not as attractive. They weren't as talented in some basic skills, such as dancing. The poor had less money. It wasn't until Haruhi's first ball that they first realized exactly what that meant.

"Is there…fancy tuna?"

*snap*

Kyoya's pencil snapped from sheer shock.

Fancy tuna? They had food from all over the world and all she wanted was…fancy tuna? A staple so basic in their sushi that most people rejected it out of hand because it was so common to them.

Tamaki leapt into action "Order some fancy tuna!"

Kyoya, carried along in the surprise, added a delux sushi platter, while the twins petted and consoled her.

Reviewing this information, Kyoya, for the first time, looked at his surroundings with a commoner's eyes. If not her eyes, he reasoned, maybe a close approximation. The lights glittered from crystal chandelier's. Each girl wore a dress worth more than Haruhi's home. There was food enough to feed her neighborhood for a week, and rich enough to give them all indigestion for a month. A full orchestra played for a girl who likely had never seen a live performance. In Kyoya's experience, one's first encounter with all this decadence usually brought about one of two reactions. And yet Harui showed evidence of neither. She wasn't overwhelmed. She didn't decide then and there to remain in this world. She simply accepted it with that same phlegmatic attitude she seemed to accept everything.

As time went by, Kyoya would sometimes catch her reactions to things he considered every day, only to again be reminded that things were different for her. Through her eyes, he was able to study his school, his life and his peers as a commoner would, gaining him valuable insight for the future.


	3. Delays

AN:

Ok, I'm gonna let you know that I am STILL working on this. I am not one of those people that can write a chapter at a time though. I really wish I was. This was partly an experiment to see if I could. NO, I write a chapter here, a chapter there, and then I go back and change the first two pages.

When I sat down and really started working on this, I realized that I had already changed parts of my first two chapters. I'm going to WRITE this and THEN put it up. (somewhere in my copious amounts of free time) And so you know, yes, that means that when I update, you'll likely have to go back and read the first two chapters again, but as they are not long, no big deal, right? Thanks!

(at the moment I'm trying to figure out how to get Kyoya to realize he likes her WITHOUT a Shojo-dramatic rain/rooftop/deathbed confession)


End file.
